See The World

with BILL'S EYES

Lee is feeling nervous about the traffic but to the rickshaw driver it's just another day

Day 9 Cambodia and Vietnam

There are great restaurants everywhere and Phenom Phen is one of them.

Unspeakable things happened at this place S29 and it is best to acknowledge in the hope that it will not happen again.

This building is a memorial to those that were taken by the Pol Pot regime.

We are docked in Phenom Phen the capital city of Cambodia, and there are places to see here that represent very traumatic events in the long history of Cambodia. The Pol Pot era is complicated because of the existence of Communists countries in the greater East Asia region and the Pol Pot eara will never be forgotten for the tragic genocide of its own people. 

I will not describe our visits to the "killing fields" and the Toul Sleng "S21" prison, but my spirit was broken, and sadness overwhelmed me. Humans can be so cruel  and inhuman.

Lee and I sat out most of the S21 prison tour. 

Afterwards, the whole group enjoyed a restaurant lunch in an air-conditioned room, which was a welcome reprieve on so many levels. 

The Cambodian Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda are next on our itinerary and although they represent the pride of a people in their monarchy they do cost a fortune to construct and maintain. I hope our entrance fee is well used. 

The current King of Cambodia is in Beijing tending to his mother who is undergoing surgery there, and the connection with Beijing is the result of the current Kings' father living in exile there for many years. 

The official ceremonies that take place in the palace must be grand as the building, and surrounding grounds are vast and structured is the word that comes to mind, as I walk about the beautiful and well-tended gardens. 

There are lots of stories depicted on walls, some of the stories are about a culture that is centuries old, and the silver floor of one of the buildings seems so out of place, but then what are we foreigners to say.  

We forego a trip to the National Museum and opt to clamber onto Rickshaws (one per person) for our return trip to the cruise vessel all praying that the traffic will part like the Red Sea to smooth our passage back. I took some video recordings of the chaos, and it may yet appear on Dash-Cam Weekly.

The cruise has arranged a BBQ dinner on the top deck of the riverboat, and a performance of traditional Cambodian dancing is a treat to end the night. 

Even though we are moored in Phenom Phen Lee and I resist the temptation to go walking again and enjoy a session of friendly discussion with other passengers.